East Ridge students to form after-school Quidditch club

• East Ridge Muggles

East Ridge High School students Megan Thompson and Natalie Arcand have started an after school Quidditch team.

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• WEB LINK: How to play Quidditch

Quidditch at East Ridge High School?

That’s correct. A small group of East Ridge students are attempting to form an after-school club that will take up the make-believe sport featured in the popular “Harry Potter” novel and film series.

The students hosted an informational meeting on their new quidditch club Wednesday, Dec. 2.

When East Ridge junior Megan Thompson first suggested the game of Quidditch to her friends, they were a bit skeptical because it general involves chasing a ball while flying on a broomstick

“At first I was like, ‘Yeah Quidditch that’s magical; how are we going to do this?’” junior Natalie Arcand said. “But once you look at the rules it’s a really fun game.”

“Ground Quidditch” as it is called, isn’t a completely new idea. Clubs at high schools and colleges across the country have been playing it for the last few years.

“It’s not about Harry Potter really,” Arcand said. “It’s about the game.”

The simple explanation of Quidditch is that it’s a combination of football, soccer, hide and seek and tag.

“We really don’t care how many people show up, we just want to play,” Thompson said.

In the Harry Potter series the quidditch players are required to be on a broom at all times, but in the non-magical version that’s optional.

“For us there’s really no purpose to the broom,” junior Liz Bailey said. “For them it was to fly, but we wouldn’t need it obviously.”

Ideally, Thompson said, they would have 30 players so they could make up the four teams from the books — Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin.

Since the girls have never played Quidditch before, they said it could be difficult to actually get the team going because everyone would be a beginner.

“I really want people to come and be ready to play so it’s not just chaotic,” Arcand said.

The girls said they will be implementing some restrictions on the rules however since it can be a very physical, aggressive game and since there will be boys and girls playing that could be dangerous.

“Hopefully we don’t lose control of the rowdier boys,” Thompson said. “It’s really not going to be as physical as the rules say.”

East Ridge High School Quidditch will meet Mondays after school for practice and games will be played Tuesdays and Thursdays. Students must pay $15 to join which will cover the equipment and t-shirts. Quidditch tryouts will be Dec. 8 after school.

Visit the Woodbury Bulletin’s Area Voices blog “Beyond the Beat” to learn how to play Quidditch. www.areavoices.com/WB

Tags: high schools, east ridge high school, harry potter, education, quidditch